Are you interested in getting discounts on your solar energy system and storage? XCEL’s Solar Rewards program is now offering significant discounts for Income qualified and disproportionately impacted communities program for both solar systems and energy storage systems.

The Program:

For batteries, Xcel will pay for $800 per kW of equipment installed, or up to 80% of the equipment cost. In combination with the 30% federal tax credit, our customers are saving over 80% of the installed cost to add batteries to their solar system.

Xcel also has a program for solar energy systems without batteries that is expected to reopen in 2025. This program offers a discount of one dollar per watt installed for systems up to 7 kW. This means a discount up to 7000$ dollars! This utility rebate could cover over a quarter of total costs in addition to the federal 30% tax credit.

The IQ/DIC program (Income Qualified or Disproportionately Impacted Community) is meant to offer access to clean renewable energy for both households that meet income requirements and communities that are most impacted by environmental health and social justice issues.

How to Qualify:

For the IQ/DIC program, customers must meet one of following criteria:

1. 1. The median household income is less than two times the federal poverty guideline
   2. The median household income is less than 80% of the area’s median income
   3. The customer may qualify under the income guidelines of Section 40-8.5-105, C.R.S. adopted by the Department of Human Services
   4. Live in a DIC community

The Disproportionately Impacted Communities criteria are defined by Colorado EnviroScreen: an environmental justice mapping tool. This program was developed for the Colorado Department of Public Health.  The map identifies geographic areas with poor quality of air and water, vulnerability to natural disasters increased by climate change, in close proximity to heavily polluting industries, and higher prevalence of certain diseases likely impacted by these factors.

To find out if you reside in a disproportionately impacted community, you can use the EnviroScreen mapping tool. All addresses located in areas with an EnviroScreen score in the top 20 percent are eligible for these discounts. You can simply type in your address and check if you live in an area with diagonal lines on the map. A significant portion of Xcel territory falls within these areas.